Bang!
In the air, Sage completely disregarded the sixteen sacred bullets coming at him from all directions. With a reach of his finger, he plummeted downwards like a meteor.
His speed was so fast that even Doflamingo couldn't react in time. The sacred bullets, shooting forward, were caught in Sage's whirlwind-like rotation and were all deflected away, unable to touch his body at all.
This wasn't actually a 'whirlwind'; it was merely the afterimage of Sage's fists and feet, moving too fast to be seen clearly!
Boom boom boom boom!
Amidst the continuous dull thuds, those black lines shot forward, rebounding from front to back, and converged near Doflamingo. A fist, wrapped in black flames, smashed over fiercely.
The immense force behind the fist made Doflamingo break into a cold sweat, and instinctively, the Birdcage line exploded around him, retracting powerfully inward. At the same time, the lines awakened on the ground did the same, continuously forming high-density lines that intertwined with his Haki-covered Birdcage line, creating a black-and-white woven wall like ocean waves.
This wall was entirely enveloped by Haki, even protruding outward with dense and sharp spikes, aimed toward Sage's fist.
"God's Slaying·Shield Killing Line!!"
This time, he used all his Haki!
Bam!!
The fist connected with the shield, bursting out like thunder, forcefully blasting the center of the shield open a little. The awakened line shattered, and the Birdcage line mixed within was also scattered by this punch, exposing a tiny hole.
But the strength of Sage's fist progressively weakened, allowing the exposed hole to quickly close up.
Sage's fist didn't directly contact the spiked shield; the flowing coiled Haki, separated from the surface of the fist, slammed onto the shield.
The externalized technique is meant to attack the enemy without contact, avoiding the touch of certain Ability Users.
If not for Haki, with Sage's current strength, hitting this shield head-on might not break it, but his fist would surely be pierced through like a sieve.
The Seven Warlords of the Sea...
are not that weak!
Yet under this punch, Doflamingo stepped back two steps, his expression completely solemn.
This was his full power, broken through with just a single punch!
The Birdcage line indeed cannot be destroyed, but that doesn't mean it can't be moved... The fist's power spread out his Birdcage line, not to mention other lines.
Especially with this guy's speed, able to defend against one punch... If he moves away, Doflamingo won't be able to stop him.
The ability is the ability, the body is the body; his body hasn't reached such a level of strength.
Bang!
Just as he thought this, another thud came from outside the wall of lines. The newly gathered lines were struck again to form a hole, clearly showing the black flame-like fist on the opposite side.
What's the plan?
Doflamingo was taken aback, realizing something, chuckling: "You want to break through my line? Impossible! Just keep hitting..."
Sage remained silent, just hammering away with his fist.
This thing...
If he couldn't break it, could he really not hit it?
Bam!
Bam bam bam!
With several punches, each time a gap opened in the shield.
Sage persisted relentlessly, seeming determined to break this shield.
As this continued, the smile on Doflamingo's face grew wider.
Fool?
No... perhaps it was the arrogance of a strongman.
Yet sometimes such arrogance leads to failure.
His Haki has a special quality, but his stamina doesn't seem to be, which can also be felt.
As long as he holds on, the winner will surely be...
"It's me!"
Sage again raised his fist high, glaring at the shield made of lines, exclaiming: "I said, your Death Star is shining!"
Boom!!
The fist broke through the shield again, creating a hole. But this time it's different; beneath the hole, the concentrated Haki surged like a tempest, or burned like raging fire, forming a massive wave directly hitting Doflamingo's body.
Under this wave, Doflamingo shook, freezing in place, while the wave-like lines at the front fell away like the hair of a very weak person.
Neither Birdcage line nor Awakening line remained as they fell to the ground, gradually disappearing.
Sage maintained the motion of punching, smiling at the standing Doflamingo: "Doesn't this mean victory?"
Even if all Haki was focused on the fist, the strength was limited. Against Doflamingo's Birdcage line and Awakening line with Haki, pure externalized Haki indeed couldn't break it altogether.
But who said he only uses externalized Haki?
Lines can be hard, toughness can be high, but are merely surface; Internal Destruction can penetrate the hard surface, thus striking the inside.
This shield wall is thick; using the fist against the enemy, Internal Destruction only impacted the lines, creating a hole.
But... Internal Destruction combined with externalized technique suffices.
Before, Sage couldn't combine externalized technique and Internal Destruction, but that doesn't mean he can't now!
The will to fight enhances more than training!
Especially fighting against strong enemies!
Doflamingo is not as notorious as the sea hints.
Sage is confident he can rely on his physical prowess to outpace this wall. He trusts that Doflamingo cannot keep up, as long as he lands a punch, the body completely covered in line Haki will be overwhelmed by him.